Hello friends, Merry Christmas! I hope you all are enjoying your holiday with friends and family, I know I am. I wanted to provide an update on our family journey that I shared about previously, as we just shared our first Christmas together. If you haven't read my original post about our family journey, click here to read. This Christmas has been the best in our memory thanks to our newfound family, and I again thank each and every one of you for your warmth and kindness.
It was about eight o'clock in the morning when we set out for the two-and-a-half-hour trip to Jonesboro, Arkansas. We stopped for coffee and headed south, spirits high among us. This was to be our first Christmas together, sixty-three years in the making. In addition to the who we had met just a few months before, we were also to meet even more family at this gathering, which we had been really looking forward to. Soon enough, we all converged on Aunt Joan's house, cars with license plates from five different states parked in the driveway.
Upon arriving, we were greeted gleefully by Joan and others. Immediately we were taken into the festive atmosphere. Others began to arrive as we settled in, and soon we had a full house. Among the guests were three cousins who had come from Tennessee and Mississippi, daughters and granddaughter of great aunt Bee, my grandfather's sister (Linda, Pat, and Linda's daughter Tammy). Ever since the breakthrough had been made and contact with family began, these cousins had reached out to me with such kindness. I am over the moon that they had come to meet us. These ladies are fabulous quilters, and I've loved seeing their work through Facebook for the past few months. Imagine my delight and surprise when they came bearing gifts. Inside two bags, one for my parents and one for me, was two absolutely beautiful, handmade quilts.
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Quilt gifted to me by Linda
We chatted at the tables set up in the garage, as there were so many of us. It was then that cousin Linda, gifter of the quilts, pulled out another surprise. We waited in anticipation as she pulled an envelope of family photos from her purse. Dad and I were thrilled to see them. I began to pull out my phone to take photos of the photos, when Linda said "these are for you." They had been kind enough to make us our own copies of all the moments that we had missed. We spent time filing through them, listening to the information and stories that the ladies had to share. We laughed about the shocking resemblances and shared features among us all. These moments are absolutely priceless to me.
Soon we joined for the meal, a grand southern spread made by several members of the family. We said grace and dug in, and boy was it delicious. The room fell quiet as we enjoyed our plates. After, it was time for the ornament exchange, an annual tradition for the family that I had never done before. We gathered in the living room in a large circle, each with an ornament we had brought. Aunt Joan sat at the fireplace and began to read the story of the origin of Christmas. Each time a key word was said, we passed the ornament to the person to our right. By the end of the story, we each had a new ornament! We opened them in unison, a fun reveal. I got cousin Ethan's T-Rex ornament, which I think is absolutely awesome, and looks perfect on my pink tree at home. It felt so good to be a part of something like this.
We visited for a while longer, getting to know the newly met members of the family. I could try to nail down this feeling into words, but I'm not sure that its possible. It took a long time for us to find our way here, yet I have never been so sure where I belong. Soon, we had to set back out for home. No amount of time would have been enough. There are still so many conversations I cannot wait to have, and moments I cannot wait to share with every member of this incredible family. Thank you for teaching us about unconditional love, and I am so eager to see you all again. Thank you for a very special, memorable Christmas!
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